Brain's Sleeping Trouble
by Chrys-DASL
Summary: Alan Powers is having a serious problem, one that's causing him to forget assignments and do poorly in school. The boy simply can't sleep, so Mr. Ratburn sends him to a school counselor to help him. Can she do anything for the sleepless student? One-shot.


**Brain's Sleeping Trouble**

Brain looked up to his alarm clock. It was two a.m., and for the third time that week, he knew that he had yet to fall asleep. The boy was exhausted. His eyes had bags under them and his legs ached from lack of sleep. Yet nothing had worked, not even a glass of warm milk before bed. He simply couldn't sleep.

Outside, the bugs of summer made noises as a cop car patrolled the area. Brain moved to his window and looked down, eying the dark city carefully. Nothing was scaring him, he thought, checking his pulse by putting two fingers to his neck. He counted the beats, but his heart rate was actually slower than normal by a full ten beats. He definitely wasn't scared.

He moved back to his bed and refluffed the pillows. He made sure the sheet was tight and the blankets were organized correctly. He lay down, wondering if the bed wasn't comfortable, but it felt fine. Brain simply couldn't sleep, and it was beginning to wear on him.

"Alan, do you have your report on the ancient city of Rome?" Mr. Ratburn asked. Brain hung his head, shaking it 'no' and causing Mr. Ratburn to turn pale. "Are you having trouble-? No, never mind. See me after class Alan. Sue Ellen, will you present your report on the Trojans instead?" Mr. Ratburn requested, clearing his throat and nervously sitting down at his desk.

The class was in awe. Alan Powers, The Brain, didn't have his homework? Buster's ears fell for his friend, not knowing what Mr. Ratburn would do to him. Brain was expected to be punctual and smart and prepared, the best student Elwood City had to offer. He couldn't be slacking off or whatever was going on.

When the bell rang, the class filed out of the room, glancing at Brain as he remained in his seat, his books unstacked and his pencils scattered around. He didn't stand, but Mr. Ratburn was more than eager to come to him.

"Alan, are you having problems at home? Is something bothering you?" Mr. Ratburn asked, taking a seat across from him. Brain shook his head before sighing heavily. "What is it then, Alan? This isn't like you."

"I have insomnia, Mr. Ratburn. It's affecting my memory, and I forgot that today was the tenth, my presentation day. I promise it won't happen again, but I am unsure of how to cure this ailment of mine. It seems to have no source, no reason," Brain explained.

"Alan, insomnia is serious business. I think I should refer you to our newest school counselor, Beverly Maxwell. She's been trained in child psychology, and I'm sure if you trust her, she can help you get to the bottom of your insomnia. In fact, let me call her right now. Will you follow me to the teacher's lounge?" Mr. Ratburn asked. Brain shrugged, putting his things into his desk without order.

Once in the lounge, Mr. Ratburn sat at a desk in the corner with a lone office phone. He dialed a number and waited a few moments. Then, the other person answered, but Brain was distracted by the kids playing outside the window. When he came to again, Mr. Ratburn was tapping his arm; his phone call was over.

"Alan, she wants to see you at her downtown office this afternoon. Do you need to call your parents for a ride?" Mr. Ratburn asked. Brain nodded, so Mr. Ratburn showed him how to use the phone. Brain called his mother at the ice cream shop and explained the situation. She arrived a few minutes later, nervous but eager to get to the bottom of her son's problem.

"Alan, I wish you would've told me about your sleeping troubles. I have a children's sleep aid that Bitzi gave me, and I can work with you to rearrange your room or whatever you need to sleep," Mrs. Powers said quickly.

"I don't know what the problem is. That's why we're going to see Dr. Maxwell," Brain explained, pointing out the office building. Mrs. Powers pulled into a small parking lot next door, and a moment later, she signed him into the small reception area for his appointment.

"Alan? Hi, I'm Dr. Maxwell. Come in," Beverly Maxwell smiled, gesturing him into her office. Once inside, Brain saw numerous educational toys and colorful, comfortable furniture. He chose a blue chair while Dr. Maxwell rolled over her large, leather office chair. "So, Nigel tells me you're having insomnia. Do you want to tell me about it?"

"For the last few days, I haven't been able to sleep. I lay there and feel like I'm tired, but then I daydream, and when I stop daydreaming, it's far from morning. So, I lay back and keep daydreaming, trying to get to sleep, but nothing works. I tried warm milk, counting the decimal places of pi, everything! But nothing seems to be working," Brain sighed.

"What has your life been like the last couple of days?" Dr. Maxwell asked. Brain shrugged, "Normal, completely normal. On Monday, Mr. Ratburn gave out our report topics for our Ancient Greece and Rome unit. I was assigned the city of Rome, but I forgot today was my presentation. I didn't have anything with me, but it's finished! Honest, it's finished!"

Dr. Maxwell scribbled some notes while she nodded, "So this project has made you slightly nervous?"

"No, not at all. This has actually been a pretty lax week when it comes to assignment. We've only had three pages of arithmetic so far," Brain explained. Dr. Maxwell nodded, "And your parents? Have things been going well for them?"

"Everything is fine, Dr. Maxwell. I'm not sure why I can't sleep, and I've thought about it constantly. I'm just going through a dry spell or something. It's fine, perfectly fine. I don't know why I've come here, actually. I bet tonight I'll have a great night's sleep," Brain smiled.

Dr. Maxwell shook her head with doubt, "I feel like something deeper is bothering you, something way, deep down that you haven't thought about yet. Because your teacher contacted me, you're required to do what I tell you, and I want you to journal. I don't want a scientific journal of numbers, figures, or what you think is going on. I want your thoughts about anything you find interesting. If you see a shooting star and it makes you think of extraterrestrial life, write about it. Do you understand?"

Brain nodded, accepting a composition notebook from Dr. Maxwell. Her card was stapled to the cover, and Brain knew this woman was important. He'd have to keep in contact with her for Mr. Ratburn's sake even if he disagreed with her methods.

So he went home, had dinner, and completed what little homework he had. When he was done, he dressed for bed and sat down with his journal.

At first, he thought he'd write about what he thought of having so little homework, but he had already concluded Mr. Ratburn was giving them an easy week before assigning them their yearly research project about an entire time period. Then he thought he'd write about the poor ingredients in the school lunches, but he knew it wasn't their fault if government funding was too little to meet student needs.

As he thought of what to write about, he felt himself growing more and more tired. He turned off his overhead light and turned on his lamp, returning to his desk to begin to write something, anything.

But before he could lift his pen, his head fell onto the pages, and for the first time in four days, Brain slept.

"Alan, you look crisp and ready for the day!" Mrs. Powers cried cheerfully. For two nights in a row, Brain had tried to journal, and both times, he found himself asleep at his desk. His memory was already back to normal, even if his neck hurt from the strange angles.

Once at school, Brain found himself face-to-face with Dr. Maxwell. She sat at the back of the classroom as the students filed inside, and Brain tried not to look at her too closely as he waited for class to begin.

When Mr. Ratburn entered, Brain realized they were having a guest speaker presentation from Dr. Maxwell. As he tried to figure out what it was, Dr. Maxwell moved to the front of the room after handing a stack of pamphlets to Buster and Alex to pass around the room. Brain looked down; the pamphlet was about Dr. Maxwell herself.

"Hi, everyone, I'm Lakewood Elementary's newest school counselor. I've decided to sell my practice and return to a school setting because well, you kids are what matter to me. So, on page one of the pamphlet, what's my favorite food?" Dr. Maxwell asked. Buster's hand flew up the highest, so she called on him.

"You like cheeseburger macaroni!" Buster cried. "I love when my mom makes that," he moaned, slumping forward as he thought of the delicious dish.

"Correct, Buster. I'm a lot like you guys when it comes to my interest. My favorite color is...?" she called. Jenna answered correctly; her favorite color was glittery hot pink. "I like all kinds of music, just like all of you, and no matter what your problem is, I can help you."

A few minutes later, Dr. Maxwell moved to Miss Sweetwater's classroom, where she assisted in singing a song about herself. Brain felt happy that she would be at the school all the time, and now that he was sleeping soundly, he knew he could help his friends get help with their problems too, no matter how trivial they seemed.

~End

Theme 033: Insomnia

I completed this one-shot for a theme list challenge I'm doing with TheUltimateCombo and others. If you'd like to join us, see our profiles for more info and feel free to PM us with questions at any time.


End file.
